It was interesting to see that the ACCC has now indicated that a different financial structure for the NBN might have to be the next major step in the Australian broadband saga. After it became clear that, following his proper election in 2016, the Prime Minister didn’t take the opportunity to introduce the essential structural […]
An NBN write down is now firmly on the agenda Read More »
Australia’s broadband is slower than Kazakhstan’s
Jan 2018 The Young Witness – Craig Thomson Read More »
NBN expert laments second rate network
Jan 2018 Newcastle Herald Michael Paris Read More »
TPG Telecom Limited acquired local ISP iiNet. TPG is now Australia’s second-biggest provider of fixed-line broadband in Australia with over 1.7 million customers. Services including voice, internet and data solutions are provided to a customer base ranging from the consumer market through to small and medium enterprises, corporate and government sectors. The company also owns a
Vocus and TPG continue to challenge Telstra and Optus Read More »
Most countries, including Australia, don’t have to fear internet quality problems in the same way as might be the case in the USA. The US competition watchdog has little power to hold telcos accountable for the nature of their broadband services. Back in 1996 broadband was classified as a content service and not a telecom
Net neutrality not a serious issue in Australia Read More »
Donald Trump’s internet controversy exposes regulatory hole in Australia
Dec 2017 – The New Daily – Alana Michelson Read More »
Telstra is Australia’s largest telecommunications provider offering a full range of telecom services throughout Australia. The company provides basic access services to most homes and businesses, local and long-distance telephone call services, and mobile and internet services. Wholesale services are also provided to ISPs and RSPs while advertising and subscription television services are provided through subsidiary
Australia’s top three Telcos face growing competition Read More »
Regardless of whether there are leftish, right-wing or central politics at play, people power and market forces are pushing the use of smarter energy forward at considerable speed. The deployment of the largest battery storage facility in the world in South Australia, together with the many solar and wind farms that are relentlessly being developed
Unstoppable smart energy Read More »
Australia and the NBN the ‘odd one out’ without fibre-only networks: analyst
Dec 2017 – ITWire Peter Dinham Read More »
NBN’s critical HFC mistake revealed: prioritising activations over repairs
Dec 2017 – SMH Ben Grubb Read More »
Council brings international trade delegation to Caboolture
June 2017 Moreton Bay Read More »
Just back from my trip to Europe where I followed some of the key international telecoms developments. Because of the highly politicised situation around the NBN in Australia it is important to look beyond the sometimes parochially-focussed NBN discussion in our country. At the joint forum of the Long-Term Infrastructure Investments Association (LTIIA) and the
The NBN in the broader context of global telecom developments Read More »
New NBN Pay-TV Fizzer Looms As Next Big Headache
Nov 2017 – ChannelNews Read More »
The problem with the NBN multi technology mix (MtM) policy is that they are using old technologies and if you are going to upgrade this you will come across lots of nasty surprises, as already has become clear in relation to the FttN part of the project. Some parts of the cable infrastructure is even
HFC: the next NBN debacle. Read More »
Tell me what your problem is and I’ll tell you what the solution is – money. There is little doubt that citizens, their cities and communities as well businesses, all support the development of smart cities with its promise of increased liveability, sustainability, mobility, social and economic infrastructure and so on. The enormous increase in
Smart city the long-term investment dilemma Read More »
There are some interesting but at the same time frightening developments in politics around the world. This is mainly driven by the fact that people no longer trust their traditional politicians and authorities. The differences between socialist (workers) and liberal (business/professionals) parties have been turned upside down. The liberals are now more conservative, with a
National vs city-based democracy Read More »
With the announcement of the government’s first smart city grants in WA and the NT – with others to follow soon – it is time to start looking at national smart city collaboration in order to achieve a maximum outcome from the funds that are made available and to ensure that we don’t simply end
A key reason for my participation in the Smart City World Congress in Barcelona was to further work on international smart city collaboration that was started exactly a year ago at the Dutch Australian Smart City Summit in Sydney, which was attended by Her Majesty Queen Maxima of the Netherlands. Since that time there have
Smart City World Congress Barcelona: Dutch Australian Collaboration Read More »
Only a few decades ago there were only a handful of megacities around the world. Now there are more than 1000 cities with between 1 and 2 million inhabitants, and 40 cities with more than 10 million people. If we look at population growth in these megacities it is interesting to note that in general
Housing affordability and smart cities Read More »
I am in Barcelona at the moment for the Smart City World Congress. With Catalonia and its capital city Barcelona currently in the international political spotlight it’s a fascinating time to be here again. From my visitor’s perspective life looks normal – perhaps a few more Catalonian flags around, but most were there already when
Hello from Smart City Barcelona Read More »
The sun may finally be setting on Rupert Murdoch’s media power
Nov 2017 – The New Daily – Rod Myer Read More »
Problem Industry-Wide, Says Budde – Urges Govt. Write-Off
Nov 2017 – Channelnews Read More »
Extended interview with Paul Budde
Nov 2017 – ABC The Business – Elysse Morgan Read More »
Fibre Optics: A look at Australia’s NBN
Nov 2017 – ABC The Money Show – Richard Aedy Read More »
Tech experts propose temporary fix for NBN mess
Nov 2017 – IT Wire – Sam Vargeshe Read More »
Australian regulator starts enquiry into NBN service standards
Nov 2017 – Global Telecoms Business – Alan Burkitt-Gray Read More »
The ACCC has announced an investigation into the NBN. The trouble is that the NBN needs a political solution; the current problems can’t be solved through regulatory changes. The underlying policy model is flawed and that issue will need to be addressed before we can solve the rest of the mess. Sadly, this will not
The next NBN battle: Affordability vs Profit Read More »
The Global Smart City and Community Coalition (GSC3) is running the famous Holland Pavilion (those who have been in Barcelona before, know what I mean 😊. At the GSC3 stand also the eight Australian GSC3 cities will be on display: Adelaide, Bendigo, Canberra, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Sydney, Ipswich and Moreton Bay. Several representatives of these
The Smart City Expo World Congress 2017 in Barcelona Read More »
Turnbull is the driver of the NBN ‘trainwreck’
Oct 2017 Greenleft Weekly – Jim Mcilroy Read More »
The NBN is just another government project failure
Oct 2017 – CIO Australia – Colin Ellis Read More »
This year I have been awarded with the prestigious Charles Todd Medal for Excellence in Communications. The presentation was done by Charles’ great-grandson Barry in the presence of representatives of the telecommunications industry at a luncheon organised by Telsoc. The Charles Todd Medal The award was established by ATUG (the Australian Telecommunications Users
Charles Todd Medal acceptance speech Read More »
‘They stole six months of internet from me.’
Oct 2017 – Herald Sun – Nick Whigham Read More »
NBN: Let the blame game begin
Oct 2017 – Sydney Morning Herald Read More »
Experts question mobile threat to NBN
Oct 2017 – AFR – Paul Smith Read More »
It has taken four years for the government and the nbn company to finally admit what many people have been predicting since the very beginning of the change in NBN plans from FttH (fibre-to-the-home) to FttN (fibre-to-the-node). The Prime Minister now claims that the train wreck was always in the making If that is so, why
And so the NBN blame games start Read More »
The future NBN might look rather different.
Oct 2017 – John Menadue – Pearls and Irritations Read More »
Telstra’s Dividend slashed
Oct 2017 – ABC TV The Business – Andrew Robertson Read More »
There recently have been reports in the Australian media about a report from the Australian Institute that the country is internationally lagging in the sale of electric vehicles (EVs). Only 0.1% of all cars sold in Australia were electric in 2015 (just over 1100 new EVs were bought here), compared with 23% of all new
Cost savings on petrol could propel EVs in Australia Read More »
A big yawn and finally the federal government has woken up from its decade-long ‘sleep at the wheel’ to launch its energy policy. Perhaps it would have made some sense if it had launched this plan a decade ago, but the world has moved on while they kept bickering in parliament. Unfortunately for the government
Smart states and cities will not let the government wind back the energy clock Read More »
Will we miss out on the next multibillion dollar smart energy opportunity?
Oct 2017 – Energy Central Read More »
BuddeComm describes ‘big data’ as looking at intelligent outcomes that can be achieved from data collaboration. The most critical issue here is strategic management, rather than technology. Big data has become a vital tool as competition is forcing many companies to transform their organisations from a company-centric approach to a customer-centric one. The fact that
Australia progressing as a major APAC data centre hub Read More »
There is no doubt that social media has become an enormous success over the last decade and that it has in many ways made a great impact on how we interact with each other. One could argue that this was exactly what the early innovators envisioned – disrupting the incumbent, fat and often arrogant traditional
Dark business clouds ahead for the social media. Read More »
Energy needs a political solution
Oct 2017 – SBS Radio (in Dutch) Read More »
While Australia was a relative latecomer to the smart energy market over the last five years it has climbed quickly up the ladder and is now in the global top ten countries. Close to 1.5 million households now have solar panels on their roofs and Australia is one of the leaders in the development of
Will we miss out on the next multibillion dollar smart energy opportunity? Read More »
In all reality it looks like the multi-technology mix (MTM) as it is currently being rolled out by the nbn company is as good as it will get. Some Australians will have an excellent service, especially those on fibre-to-the-home (FttH) and fibre-to-the-curb (FttC) technologies. Others won’t see any difference from the current ADSL services they
The future NBN might look rather different Read More »
A recent article from Bloomberg on the NBN, in which I was also quoted, mentioned that Kenya had faster broadband than Australia. While that was true for a tiny part of that country, most people in Kenya don’t have speeds that high. The Australian Prime Minister jumped on that and ridiculed the Bloomberg comparison.
Don’t look at Kenya, look at Sweden. Read More »
Life in the slow lane: Australia has slower internet than Kenya
October 2017 – Sydney Morning Herald Read More »
Australia Has Slower Internet Than Kenya, Russia and Hungary
October 2017 – Bloomberg – Angus Whitley Read More »
Smart mobility in het buitenland!
September 2017 New Business Radio -(in Dutch) Read More »
The Demise of Civic Journalism: Australia’s Xenophon-Turnbull Deal
September 2017 – Center for Research on Globalization Read More »
Coalition-Xenophon deal scraps media diversity along with ownership control
September 2017 – The Independent Australia Read More »
Recently I participated in a study conducted by FTI Consulting on ‘The Business of Regulation’ Their audit provides deeper insight into: the drivers of politically-motivated regulation the importance of conduct and compliance in managing that risk, and how a new approach to communication and engagement can help companies shape their regulatory environment. The Business of
The Business of Regulations Read More »
September 2017 Central Coast Community News
Smart cities strategy for the Coast called for Read More »
I have been involved in smart energy developments since 2001 (UtiliTel, Digital Economy Working Group, Smart Grid Australia, Global Smart Grid Federation). During this time I have been in contact with all levels of government and all major energy companies as well as with the broader business and R&D eco-systems around them. See No smart
Smart energy – or tilting at windmills Read More »
The changes recently proposed to the Broadcasting Act will allow for a further concentration of media power in Australia. While from a commercial point of view the traditional media most certainly are under attack from the digital media the fact is that the traditional media wield a far greater power over national politics than all
Digital media and media diversity Read More »
The political price of super fast broadband
September 2017 ABC The Business – Interview by Andrew Robertson Read More »
Can the Turnbull Government save the #NBNFail?
September 2017 – Independent Australia Read More »
Sorry, Foxtel – The World Has Moved On, Says Paul Budde
August 2017 – ChannelNews Read More »
It is still a battle to extend the perception of the importance of high-speed broadband beyond fast access to the internet or to Netflix. But the social and economic benefits are equally important, especially looking towards medium- and long-term future development of the region. The healthcare, government services and education sectors are undergoing massive transformations,
The importance of high-speed broadband in regional Australia Read More »
Quite coincidentally, at the same time that G.fast is being discussed in Australia a similar discussion is taking place in the USA; and there is doubt there too about the contribution that G.fast can make to improve the performance of the faltering broadband systems in both countries. G.fast is a band-aid solution that can be
Upgrading the NBN with G.fast has its limitations Read More »
While it is intuitive to accept that the media plays a key role in the level of perceived fear in society in relation to terrorist attacks, it was with interest that I read the bachelor thesis of my Italian nephew, who is studying at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands. It provides an interesting
Mass media and the increased perception of the threat of terrorism Read More »
The announcement of the proposed merger of Foxtel with Fox Sport Australia, combined with Telstra’s agreement to dilute its shareholding in the pay TV operator, paves the way for the end of the Foxtel war between News Corp Australia (formerly News Limited) and Telstra. The decline in revenue and subscriber numbers will most certainly have
The end of the Foxtel wars Read More »
It is worthwhile to analyse what is behind Telstra’s recent announcements that it will both cut its dividend and sell $5bn in future NBN revenue. These announcements drowned out the rather solid earnings for the previous financial year and an interesting program of capital investments in its existing network. While the NBN deals negotiated by
Telstra: shareholders vs customers Read More »
The impetuous towards developing Smart Cities can be driven by a number of factors. It may be that citizens, who have increasingly becoming accustomed to the convenience of services being made available through the internet and through apps on their smart phones and tablets become frustrated when ICT services and infrastructure aren’t keeping up. This
Various drivers are propelling Smart City developments Read More »
This again became very clear to me in my discussion with the Joint Standing Committee on the National Broadband Network. When addressing the various well-documented problems of the NBN the chair of the committee repeatedly mentioned in defence of the current multi-technology-mix MtM policy that many other counties were also not deploying national FttH. However
NBN goes against the very principles of conservative government Read More »
It is interesting, but sad, to see the blame game that is going on in the telecoms industry. As with so many of the nbn problems, at the core it is a problem created by politicians. This one goes back to the original nbn policy, and it was the Labor government that created the CVC
Government policy is to blame not the nbn nor the RSPs Read More »
Mid-year NBN assessment The rollout of the NBN has been gathering pace, but many problems remain. Most of the issues mentioned below have been addressed by me at various Senate Inquiries over the last decade. The fact that they have not been addressed and/or resolved it is an indication that politicians have so far failed
Submission for the Joint Standing Committee on the National Broadband Network Read More »
Opinion editorial for the Australian Financial Review There are now overwhelming signs that all is not well with the NBN, through its ACMA intervention the government now also admits that all is not well. ACMA will investigate the war that is going on between the nbn company and its customers, the retail service providers (RSPs).
Let’s press the reset button on the NBN Read More »
Back in 2001 I initiated the very first smart city event in Australia. In all some 75 representatives of Australian local councils gathered in Brighton-Le-Sands in Sydney. The focus of that event was the broadbanding of local communities around the country. This was seen by the local councils as one of the most important elements
The smart city market moving towards 2018 Read More »
It has become very clear that innovation related to ICT and digital technologies is one of the key components for future economic and social strength. Countries with a sophisticated fixed and mobile telecoms infrastructure are well placed to take advantage of these future technological and societal developments. Countries without the necessary infrastructure however are expected
Fixed broadband is a key infrastructure for future progress Read More »
As you can see below I am one of the authors of this publication. On behalf of the publishers, I can offer a 20% discount on any pre-orders of the book (I am not receiving any royalties nor do I have any other financial interest in this publication). There are several different definitions of “smart cities”
Smart Cities: Technologies, Challenges and Future Prospects Read More »
Within the market there is a dynamic shift among customers to fibre networks, as this infrastructure is being built out by nbn (NBN Co), the company responsible for the national broadband deployment. Australia’s broadband sector is making improved progress in its migration to a multi-technology the NBN. Growth in the overall number of broadband subscribers
Australian National Broadband Network rollout finally gains momentum Read More »
With all of the current turbulence in the American society it is no wonder that its telecommunications market is also under severe pressure. In his election campaign Trump promised his American supporters to make changes to what he called the Washington swamp, but it has become clear that the opposite is happening. While in previous
Telcos players in the US set to become even lazier Read More »
The message I am getting from talks with some of the European telcos is that many of them who began to implement FttN solutions a decade or so ago now see that a profitable business model for a full FttH network is within reach. The uptake of higher-speed packages is steadily increasing. In general terms,
FttH business model is gaining strength Read More »
Growth in the Australian fixed broadband market has slowed in line with higher penetration rates. Within the market there is a dynamic shift among customers to fibre networks, as this infrastructure is being built out by nbn (NBN Co), the company responsible for the national broadband deployment. While fibre has become by far the fastest
Australia’s NBN preps for G.fast and DOCSIS3.1 services in 2017 Read More »
Just over two years ago Singapore announced its proposals for a program which was entitled Smart Nation. The ambitious project was designed in order to fasten the city, residents and government into a new digital age of innovation and industry. Singapore is making the bold transition from a successful city to Smart Nation. It already
Update on Singapore’s journey towards a smart nation Read More »
There are many problems with the NBN, but one of the few elements of the original plan that has not been changed might have a longer-term positive outcome – that is, if the nbn company is in fact able to upgrade most of its network to FttC and FttH. I am talking about the monopoly
NBN legislation might still work out positively Read More »
Agriculture is forecast to be one of the key industries where the Internet of Things can make a significant contribution to Australia’s future growth and competitiveness. The future of farming is in collecting and analysing big data in order to maximise efficiency, mitigate risk and drive productivity. Connected farmers will be able to monitor and
IoT network for farmers Read More »
There are a number of industries leading the current changes brought about by the digital evolution – but none more so than the ICT industry. This sector alone has been transformational in developing the appropriate infrastructure, services and equipment required to underpin our societies of the future. The enormous shift towards digital technologies continues
Telecoms infrastructure and digital technologies lead the way Read More »
There is no doubt that we are in the midst of an energy revolution. Not only is the nature of energy changing from fossil-generated energy to renewable – there is a total change in the distribution structure occurring with less focus on centralisation and more on distributed energy. Concerns about issues such as energy security,
Global Smart Energy Developments Read More »
Personal message from Paul Budde I take great pleasure in announcing that BuddeComm has recently been acquired by the French-based research company the Ubiquick Group. After creating BuddeComm nearly 40 years ago it is time to look towards a change for Louise and myself. A key factor in this decision was the purchaser’s ability to
BuddeComm sale to Ubiquick Read More »
It will be the third time in six months that a Dutch Smart City Mission will visit Australia. This time the visit will coincide with next week’s Smart Communities Conference in Adelaide, organised by the Australian Smart Communities Association (ASCA). The first visit took place in November last year when Queen Maxima of the Netherlands
Dutch Smart City Delegation back in Australia Read More »
With the rise of digital platforms, the media industry has had to change and the transformation continues in 2017. In newspaper and book publishing, TV and radio broadcasting, film, music, and other forms of media, we see that the national walls that protect local organisations within traditional models are crumbling. In other words, it is
The Australian Digital Media Industry Continues its Transformation Read More »
Australia’s leading pay TV provider FOXTEL during the last few years has struggled to increase pay TV penetration in Australia. The market has also seen the launch of competing OTT platforms, including Stan and Netflix. These offer competitively priced basic packages, commonly below AU$10 per month letting consumers’ view content at a time of their
Consolidation in Australia’s VOD Market Begins Read More »
With an increased awareness of the importance of digital infrastructure many local councils are disillusioned by not having access to infrastructure such as FttH and smart grids. The organisations involved in the delivery of this are slow in upgrading their infrastructure since in many cases they will not be the recipients of the benefits derived
People are ready for smart environments Read More »
A few months ago I reported on the many incubation hubs and innovation labs that have sprung up around the country, and indeed around the world. Many of these centres are developed within smart cities; some are using local libraries; many ICT companies have their own centres; and the universities have also become key players
Adding creativity to collaborative innovation and other smart developments Read More »
That is what happens when you base your telecommunications policies on the wrong foundations. The problems with the telecommunications industry in America go back to 1996, when the FCC decided that broadband in America should be classified as internet (being content) and that therefore it would not fall under the normal telecommunication regulations. Suddenly what
Telecoms competition on a downhill slide in America Read More »
Will this be the turnaround for the government that many of us hoped for when Malcolm Turnbull took over from Tony Abbott? While politics remains politics, and governments remain governments, the tone of this Budget is completely different from the shock horror Budget of 2014 that resulted in political uproar, a gridlocked parliament, and the
Smart budget – potential for smart developments Read More »
From the moment this suggestion was first mooted I was strongly opposed to the broadband tax that the government proposed in December 2016. It will slam around $7 per month on fixed broadband subscriptions, making the price broadband services in Australia among the highest in the developed economies. The aim of the tax is to
As the roll out of FttH remains a slow process it is no wonder that more and more people are looking towards mobile as a potential alternative. Obviously mobile communication has improved over recent years in providing excellent access to broadband; and it has also become more affordable. At the same time there is the
The role of FttH in the development of 5G Read More »
Back in 1980 when I still lived in the Netherlands I worked with the Dutch futurist Griet Titulaer (an astronomer by trade) in building ‘The Home of the Future’. I would say that at that stage it was more built around innovative interior design with automation features. Home entertainment also played a key role in
Last November the Global Smart Communities and Cities Coalition (GSC3) started to set up partnerships with Australian cities. ASCA was one of the first organisations who signed a MoU with GSC3 in the presence of the Queen Maxima of the Netherlands during the Australian – Netherlands Smart City Summit co-hosted by ASCA. GSC3 was back
360VR video of Australia’s leading smart cities Read More »
With an NBN that is failing many customers it is no wonder that more and more people are looking towards mobile as a potential alternative. Obviously mobile communication has improved over recent years in providing excellent access to broadband; and it has also become more affordable. At the same time there is the fabulous hype
The role of the NBN in the development of 5G Read More »
If we look at the turbulence that we are facing today in many of our western societies it becomes clear that a key underlying reason for the current chaotic situation is the lack of trust that has crept into our societies over the last decade or so. See also my blog from earlier this year:
Today’s key problem is the lack of trust Read More »
For more than a decade I have followed the trials and tribulations of New Zealand’s third mobile operator, 2Degrees. This story started at a time when regulation in New Zealand (or more to the point, the lack of it) very much favoured the incumbent operator, at that stage called Telecom New Zealand. From the very
2Degrees – where to go from here? Read More »
Broadcasting, video media, streaming are topics that are always in the headlines of the media. But it is a mixed bag of comments that you hear: ‘Broadcasting is on the way out’ ‘Netflix reaches 2 million users’, ‘Telstra struggles with Big Pond’, ‘Video streaming overtakes mobile usage’…. the list goes on. We saw the traditional
The remarkable story of Fetch Read More »
In 2017 mobile broadband subscriptions are growing rapidly and LTE infrastructure now carries over 65% of all global mobile traffic. While mobile and fixed will always exist in parallel, there is no doubt that with a faltering fixed network and an excellent mobile network, mobile will give fixed a run for its money. With competitively
Mobile infrastructure will ultimately rely on fibre broadband Read More »
The global mobile market has become far more competitive in most markets around the world due to liberalisation, the rise of Over-The-Top (OTT) providers and, in some cases, the introduction of MVNOs. In addition, as operators go hunting for new revenue streams, there has been much regional and international expansion occurring – along with consolidation.
Competitive global mobile market sees the rise of regional leaders Read More »
Last week I chaired a number of very well-attended sessions at the Connect Conference in Melbourne. My compliments to the organisers, who had gathered together a range of excellent speakers, very different from the commercially motivated group of speakers who so often feature at commercial conferences. The Plenary Opening session featured Dr Amanda Caples, the
The Next Big Thing Read More »
As mentioned in last week’s blog, as we speak Assistant Minister Angus Taylor is now in the Netherlands. He will also be briefed on the Dutch Smart City Strategy that was launched last week. After Australia, the Netherlands is now the second country with a national smart city strategy and there is obviously interest on
Netherlands Smart City Strategy and the role of GSC3 Read More »
It is interesting to compare the major economic models in the western world – the American Anglo-Saxon model, the European Rhineland model and the Scandinavian model. The Anglo-Saxon model is very much driven by small government, market-driven economic and social policies, and in general has a large focus on shareholders value. By contrast the other
Rhineland economic model is closest to smart city developments Read More »
The overall telecoms services revenue reached over $42 billion in 2016, a growth of under 1% for the 12 months to June 2016. The overall market is predicted to grow at a stronger rate in 2017. The strongest growth is coming from the second tier providers, which grew at over 10% during that time period.
Australia’s telco market grows slowly with mobile broadband driving growth Read More »
In 2017 the global mobile market has its sights firmly set on the opportunities offered through mobile data as well as looking for potential new revenues streams presented by the enterprise sector, data mining, 5G and international expansion. Mobile saturation has occurred in many of the developed markets and this has forced some of the
International expansion has strengthened the operations of many mobile operators Read More »
My involvement in the Australian energy market started in 2001 when I brought the energy companies together in Sydney, be it at that at that time we were looking at utilising their infrastructure to assist the ailing telecommunications market that was dominated by Telstra who was at that time unwilling to introduce residential broadband services
No smart energy policy for Australia Read More »
BuddeComm describes ‘big data’ as looking at intelligent outcomes that can be achieved from data collaboration. The most critical issue here is strategic management, rather than technology. Big data has become a vital tool as competition is forcing many companies to transform their organisations from a company-centric approach to a customer-centric one. The fact that
Australia progressing as a major APAC data centre hub Read More »
Having followed developments in the American telecoms market since the late 1980s, and having been involved with the Obama Administration in the development of their National Broadband Plan – at which time I was also invited to do a presentation at the White House – I do have some insights into the workings of the
The effect of American politics Read More »
ere we go again with more useless debates about whether the country needs a first-class national broadband network or a second-rate one; and again there are discussions around what other flavours of the multi-mix technology can we now add to it to strengthen the brew. By now we have lost most of Australians in this
Does Australia need a proper nbn? Read More »
fter the rowdy 1990s and early 00s the dust did settle a bit on the competition problems that continued during that period – more than 20 Inquiries, many court cases and ongoing regulatory corrections. The situation settled down somewhat with the arrival of a new CEO at Telstra, David Thodey in 2006. Subsequent changes to
The state of telecoms competition in Australia Read More »
Back in October last year we reported on our disappointment regarding our two NBN services. We have an FttB service in Sydney (replacing our ADSL2+ service) and a satellite connection in Bucketty (100km from Sydney). As reported, both services are disappointing. The service in Sydney is no better than the previous ADSL2+ service, but at least no
NBN customer service is appalling Read More »
If we go back to the early days of the NBN, now more than a decade ago, some of you might recall that from the very first day we have maintained that affordability was more important than the latest technology. I actually said that affordability was THE most important element of an NBN. Subsequent governments
Will Telstra be able to create a more affordable alternative to the NBN Read More »
Trump’s first week in office has been an interesting, if shocking, one. While many other presidents have been blamed for not using their first 100 days in office to put their stamp on the direction of their presidency, Trump is most certainly doing this. And we no longer need to wonder whether his talk is
ICT industry stands up against Trump Read More »
The Australian mobile market is dominated by the three major mobile network operators Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone (VHA), though there are numerous MVNOs which have a significant market share. MVNOs have been able to offer LTE services on a wholesale basis since early 2016, thus encouraging growth in the LTE sector and cementing the role
Australia’s MNOs prepare for migration to 5G Read More »
The fact that the election of Donald Trump came as such a shock shows the deep division, especially in America, between the people in the upper echelons of society and those who are less-educated, underserviced, and in many cases poorer. While the top 50% of society has, in general terms, done well economically over the
How can smart communities assist in addressing populism? Read More »
At the Dutch Australian Smart City Summit that I organised today, five Australian smart city organisations have received the Golden Ratio statue in recognition for their future collaboration with the Global Smart City and Community Coalition (GSC3). The presentation followed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the GSC3 and the Australian Smart
Golden Ratio statues presented to five Australian smart city organisations Read More »
The overall telecoms services revenue reached over $40 billion in 2016, a growth of 2.0% for the 12 months to June 2016. The overall market is predicted to grow more strongly in 2017. The strongest growth is coming from the second tier providers, which grew at over 10% during that time period. The market incumbent
Telstra, Optus and Vodafone face increasing threat from 2nd Tier Market Read More »
Hello from Bella Italia and in this case from the previous Republic of Venezia. The town has long been a city state and this has helped them in being strategic about its role in a world where more and more policies are pushed back to a city level. Furthermore as we all know Venice has
Venice: a model for smart cities? Read More »
This time a report from Napoli; an amazing city more authentic Italian than the ‘real’ holidays cities in Italy. It has a very long history it started as a Greek city (Neapolis) around 600BC. During the Middle Ages it was – after Paris – the 2nd largest city in Europe. As of the whole of Southern
Report from smart city Naples Read More »
As we have mentioned before, the NBN, as it is being rolled out at the moment, is as good as it will get for many years to come. While we remain critical of the government decision to abandon the FttH rollout we are also realistic and there is no option other than to accept what
Disappointment with our NBN services Read More »
Since the ACCC indicated that it is again opening up its investigation into mobile roaming there has been a great deal of noise from the various telco players regarding the pros and cons of mobile roaming. However very little attention has been given to the more subtle underlying issues. While most the operators involved in
Mobile roaming – does customer service matter to the mobile operators? Read More »
This time to report, not on developments in the Netherlands, but on the progress of the Dutch Smart City mission that will be arriving in Australia at the end of October. This year is the 400th anniversary of the landing of Dirk Hartog in what is now Shark Bay, Western Australia. He placed an inscribed pewter
Hello from Amsterdam Read More »
Referring to our recent report: Smart Cities – How cities can contribute to social stability and security, I agree that technological and economic developments over the last few decades have led to an increase in inequality. The financial benefits of technological developments and globalisation have – in the western economies – largely been delivered to the
Technology and the fight against inequality Read More »
In September 2016, NBN Co indicated its interest in a technology known as XG.Fast, it is a next level up from the G.Fast technology they started to trial in 2015 and it also needs to be seen in the yet still bigger picture of Fttdp (fibre to the distribution point). The development and deployment of
From DSL to FttN, G.FAST, Fttdp, XG-FAST – building the NBN the tortuous way Read More »
In 2016 China launched “QUESS” (Quantum Experiments at Space Scale), a new type of satellite that it hopes will be capable of “quantum communications” which is supposed to be hack-proof, through the use of “quantum entanglement”. This allows the operator to ensure that no one else is listening to your communications by reliably distributing keys
QUESS and Quantum Communications Read More »
Bevan Slattery’s scathing attack on ACCC boss Rod Sims in CommsDay might be a reflection of the attacker’s towering personality but he most certainly has a point. When the government changed the NBN policy from full fibre to mixed technology they fundamentally changed the nature of the project, including the underlying fundamentals. That being the case,
Flawed NBN structure undermines competition Read More »
Recently there was an important development for the broadband sector when the market share of fibre infrastructure lines finally overtook DSL technologies as the largest on a global level. The fixed broadband network is the infrastructure needed to meet the needs, both economic and societal, of the developed markets. In fact in many of these
High-speed infrastructure takes hold – paving the way for revenue streams Read More »
In the USA the FCC has started the discussion on the next level of telecoms in the wireless market, aimed at making spectrum in bands above 24GHz available for flexible-use of wireless services, including next-generation, or 5G networks and technologies. New technologies such as massive-MIMO are going to make it possible to deliver ‘fibre-like’ speeds
The next development in wireless broadband Read More »
It might be hard to imagine but we were already talking about fibre to the home networks back in the 1970s and 1980s. This was in the early days of interactive TV and pay TV and fibre optics were already at that time seen as the next level of telecoms infrastructure needed for such services.
Fibre optic technologies for the next 50 years Read More »
The three LTE networks operated by Optus, Telstra and Vodafone have been developed rapidly during the past two years. These MNOs are striving to provide an infrastructure capable of meetings customer demand for mobile broadband services, and are also preparing for the possibilities anticipated through the deployment of 5G within the next few years. Telstra
Australia’s MVNOs now accessing the world’s fastest LTE networks Read More »
At a recent panel discussion in Berkeley, USA, the topic – The Moral Economy of Tech – was explored. The panel discussed the way hi-tech people in general view themselves and their work, and even though I am not an engineer or a developer of software and algorithms I could very much relate to that. I often
Populism and hi-tech Read More »
Back in 2001 I established Utilitel, an industry alliance of all the major electricity companies in Australia. The initial set-up was aimed at looking at business opportunities for the utilities in the telecoms industry and over the subsequent years various new telecoms businesses were established by the utilities. Obviously this was a tough market and
Tesla doing a Google in the Australian electricity industry? Read More »
The merger was not approved by the New Zealand Regulator (6/2017). During the last decade there has been considerable merger and acquisition activity in the telecoms sector across global regions. Where these processes are not possible, for regulatory or commercial reasons, operators have found ways to share resources in a bid to provide improved services
One of the so-called low-hanging fruits in smart city plans is street lighting. Significant savings can be achieved by replacing the existing system with LED light and allowing for the management of light contingent on the level of traffic. This, of course, also results in cost savings. I discussed the street lighting project with my
The complexity of multifunctional smart city projects Read More »
The digital TV and video streaming industry has changed beyond recognition and it continues to evolve in 2016. Consumer habits are shifting from broadcast TV to on-demand content – especially streaming. Traditional TV viewing is increasingly facing competition from other viewing platforms such as smart phones, tablets, and Smart TVs. Choice is the key. Broadcasters
Pay TV market under increasing threat from Video Streaming market Read More »
With the rise of digital platforms, the media industry is rapidly changing. In newspaper and book publishing, TV and radio broadcasting, film, music, and other forms of media, we see that the national walls that protect local organisations within traditional models are crumbling. In other words, it is no longer an issue of local market
The Apps and Entertainment market continues to evolve Read More »
Interestingly, during the process of establishing the Smart City Industry Collaborative one of the blue chip companies I contacted indicated that they were not a big fan of smart cities as their company was not really in the business of ‘making people happy’. They were selling ICTs to ‘make cities smarter’. This conversation took place a few
How cities can contribute to social stability and security Read More »
The Chinese telecom market is the largest in the world in terms of subscribers and is undergoing transition. Mobile subscriptions outnumber fixed voice connections and voice is giving way to data as the primary revenue generator. China’s telecom market is served by three operators; China Telecom, China Unicom and China Mobile. All three are integrated
China Continues to Evolve as a World Leader in the Digital Media Sector Read More »
It probably is because we are so good at doing that in our industry. We start with over-promising and under-delivering and then in following years we fix it. So why would 5G be different? Our admirable technology companies are telling us that 5G will be 100x faster than 4G and that it will have 50x
One of the most difficult elements in the development of smart cities is how to finance them. Local government doesn’t have the money for it and while state and federal governments might have more money to spend there is no way that their current tax funds could pay for even a fraction of the investments
Are blockchains the solution to financing smart cities? Read More »
The global digital media entertainment market continues to go from strength to strength in 2016. In particular the global streaming revolution is gathering pace. Streaming is closing in on broadcast TV and the Internet now rivals broadcast TV as a vehicle to deliver consumer content. The entertainment industry generally is flourishing on the back of
The global streaming revolution is taking place Read More »
One of the discussions I am currently having with my international colleagues is about the international trend towards urbanisation and the resulting shift of political, economic and financial powers from centralised states and federal structures to mega-city or mega-urban region centres. Some of my American colleagues expressed the fear that this would further marginalise rural
Why we need fibre-to-the-farm Read More »
In a recent speech President Obama again stressed the need for better collaboration between the tech industry and the government. He referred to his own White House initiative – this has resulted in the newly-formed US Digital Service, which is trying to recruit the tech industry to work with and for government. One of the key reasons
Government-industry collaboration is better than developing a surveillance state. Read More »
Within the debate of the Multi Technology Mix of the Australian NBN, where the HFC also gets included in this mix for approx 20-25% of the connections, it interesting to follow the debate on the upgrade of this infrastructure in America. Cable networks around the world are now faced with a major technology upgrade known
Is building FttH cheaper than upgrading the HFC networks? Read More »
Lake Macquarie City Council has laid the foundation for creating a more connected, innovative and resilient city, with the adoption of the Lake Mac Smart City, Smart Council Digital Economy Strategy. A key development here has been that the council started this project by looking internally. They understood that if they were to develop a
Lake Macquarie Smart Council, Smart City Read More »
Many city councils are grappling with the big data issue. A key driver for their city to become smarter is to provide citizens with access to data sets that they can use to build new applications and services. As mentioned before, the smartest city will be the one with the smartest apps. On the one
Smart Cities and the open data dilemma Read More »
Back in 1980 when I still lived in the Netherlands I worked with the Dutch futurist Griet Titulaer (an astronomer by trade) in building ‘The Home of the Future’. I would say that at that stage it was more built around innovative interior design with automation features. Home entertainment also played a key role in
Waiting 30 years for smart homes and still counting Read More »
For some time now Hamburg has been working on becoming the world’s first Smart Seatropolis through a partnership between the City of Hamburg, the Hamburg Port Authorities and Cisco. With an advanced, end-to-end network being built that connects real-time information between urban services and adjacent port operations historic Hamburg is leapfrogging into the 21st century.
Hamburg – Smart Seatropolis Read More »
Sunshine Coast Council hosted the inaugural Australian Smart Communities Summit in Caloundra. The fact that the event happened there is a reflection of the commitment that this council has to the development of a smart city. One of the most critical elements here is leadership, and both the mayor and the CEO are passionate about
Sunshine Coast leading the smart city movement Read More »
When the Australian government’s National Broadband Network was announced in 2009, Ipswich partnered with surrounding regions to create what they called the Western Corridor National Broadband Network in order to attract national interests and investments. This early start paid off well for the council as it became one of the first recipients of the NBN
Smart City Ipswich Read More »
Over the last 20 years or so we have regularly revisited the developments in virtual reality (VR). I remember experiencing VR for the first time in the late 1980s, so this technology has been in the making for a very long time. And we are still uncertain about its growth over the next decade. There
VR demand set to grow, but little prospect for telcos Read More »
At regular intervals I like to report on developments in e-education. As far back as the 1990s I earmarked the education sector as one of the major beneficiaries of the new developments in digital technologies. I even predicted that this would be one of the first sectors that would take advantage of the transformational aspects
Will STEM and flipped classrooms lead the e-education transformation? Read More »
With some of the poster-child services of the sharing economy now becoming more mainstream it is interesting to follow the developments that are taking place in this early stage of development. All those actively participating in services such as Uber, AirB&B and Lyft have seen regulations creeping up on them, be it in relation to
The maturing of the sharing economy Read More »
As with so many forward-looking cities Geelong started to implement a ‘smart’ project well before the term ‘smart city’ became fashionable. But, as we have been discussing, like most of these projects also this one was at the start not undertaken in a strategic context, and again like most other projects elsewhere being implemented as
Smart City Geelong Read More »
While there are plenty of opportunities for local councils to create cost savings – especially by cutting through their internal silos and using ICT and infrastructure technologies on a sharing basis across the various city systems – the problem remains that before these cost savings can be made significant ICT investments are needed, and the
City-as-a-service – new business and investment model Read More »
As I am involved in both the smart energy and the telecoms market I am in a good position to make comparisons and observations in relation to these utility markets. I have been following the telecoms market for over 30 years and the electricity market for 15+ years – in both cases well and truly
Will telcos become the OTT players in smart energy? Read More »
After 32 years of publishing the monthly Telecommunications Newsletter in print, we have reached the end of our printed era. We were the first telecommunications newsletter to be printed in Australia but it will now only be available online, where it continues as a free weekly newsletter to some 4,000 customers, as well as a blog (2,000
The end of our printed era – 1983-2015 Telecoms & Broadband Business Newsletter Read More »
Last week I attended this most interesting conference. One striking element of the event was that every Japanese presenter mentioned ‘the disaster’ at least once in their presentation. This is how they refer to the Fukushima nuclear disaster. They almost never specify the ‘nuclear’ disaster; if they don’t just use the word ‘disaster’ they refer
Smart community conference Tokyo Read More »
On my recent trip to Europe I also visited my hometown Oss, Brabant, in the southern (better J) part of the Netherlands. Here I drove on the ‘Highway of the Future’, a 6km access road from one of the main the freeways into the city and its industrial areas. This local project has national significance
The highway of the future – Oss, The Netherlands Read More »
There certainly is a lot of interest in the M2M and Internet of Everything (IoT) market in 2016. But what we are seeing is only what is happening on the surface. Most of the M2M activities are taking place unnoticed. For example, all new electronic devices are now M2M devices. Tens of millions of smart
Most M2M activity is taking place unnoticed Read More »
Discussion paper for family and friends. This is a draft version and I never expect a final version. My personal journey: Exploring science and religion Introduction In this essay I would like to explore the role that religion and science has played in our insatiable quest of the meaning of life[1] with questions such
My personal journey: Exploring science and religion Read More »
The all-powerful social network sites People are increasingly becoming aware of the emerging ‘internet monopoly’. Companies such as Google, Facebook, Twitter and many the other (local) social network and media sites are becoming so large and powerful that they can dictate the use of their services in such a way that people lose control over
The Internet Monopoly Read More »
In 2011 I presented the report, Broadband: a Platform for Progress, to the Broadband Commission for Digital Development at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. Secretary-General of the ITU, Dr Hamadoun Touré, thanked the team of experts that, as lead author of the report, I brought together. And the Director-General of UNESCO, Dr Irina Bokova, endorsed the report
Broadband: a Platform for Progress – speech at UNESCO HQ Read More »
The following is a translation of the press release that was issued by the Ministry after my meeting with Minister Frank Heemskerk in 2009 whereby I officially presented him with a copy of the Big Think Report on Trans Sector Thinking. The Minister, on June 3rd met with Paul Budde to discuss broadband policies. Minister
Trans sector meeting with Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs Read More »
